"... until all they can see are rigid dichotomies of the sacred and the profane. Of salvation or shame with fuck all in between. The human impulse to explain hijacked: a controlled flight into terrain to ensure no passenger ever makes any connection between the proscription of mystery and their malaise."
What I take from this is that religion seeks to turn issues into black and white distinctions. Either something is sacred, and therefor favorable, or profane and heretical. The second part of the quote deals with how religion exploits the human need to seek answers, and instead of simply allowing people to be in awe of the cosmic mystery that is existence, it feeds them a bullshit story full of superstition and strict doctrine, which in turn is the cause of a lot of human suffering, and "malaise".
I particularly enjoy the lines
"... until all they can see are rigid dichotomies of the sacred and the profane. Of salvation or shame with fuck all in between. The human impulse to explain hijacked: a controlled flight into terrain to ensure no passenger ever makes any connection between the proscription of mystery and their malaise."
What I take from this is that religion seeks to turn issues into black and white distinctions. Either something is sacred, and therefor favorable, or profane and heretical. The second part of the quote deals with how religion exploits the human need to seek answers, and instead of simply allowing people to be in awe of the cosmic mystery that is existence, it feeds them a bullshit story full of superstition and strict doctrine, which in turn is the cause of a lot of human suffering, and "malaise".